DC area CoolDads don’t miss your chance to see a special preview of TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: OUT OF THE SHADOWS before the movie opens nationwide on Friday, June 3rd. We screened the last TMNT movie for you guys and I was really impressed. Let’s hope they don’t mess it up. See you guys next Wednesday.

Synopsis: After supervillain Shredder escapes custody, he joins forces with mad scientist Baxter Stockman (Tyler Perry) and two dimwitted henchmen, Bebop (Gary Anthony Williams) and Rocksteady (WWE Superstar Stephen “Sheamus” Farrelly), to unleash a diabolical plan to take over the world. As the Turtles prepare to take on Shredder and his new crew, they find themselves facing an even greater evil with similar intentions: the notorious Krang.

CoolDads in the DC area, come catch The Jungle Book movie on Wednesday before it hits theaters April 15. I have been waiting to share this promotion with you guys. My kids and I have been itching for this release. Click on the link below for your free passes:

SYNOPSIS
Raised by a family of wolves since birth, Mowgli (Neel Sethi) must leave the only home he’s ever known when the fearsome tiger Shere Khan (Idris Elba) unleashes his mighty roar. Guided by a stern panther (Ben Kingsley) and a free-spirited bear (Bill Murray), the young boy meets an array of jungle animals, including a slithery python (Scarlett Johansson) and a smooth-talking ape. Along the way, Mowgli learns valuable life lessons as his epic journey of self-discovery leads to fun and adventure.

Get ready for more of the Force to come your way and fast! On the heels of the DVD release of the glorious or inglorious return of Star Wars with “The Force Awakens,” Lucasfilms will release “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” the first Star Wars based movie outside of the Star Wars Saga. And yes 1CoolDad Academy Award Winner, Forest Whitaker will be wielding a lightsaber. It hits the big screen December 16, 2016. Check out the trailer.

This weekend Chris Hemsworth drops in theaters this week with the Ron Howard directed “In the Heart of the Sea,” and also dropped some serious knowledge on the relationship of parents and children with a most important revelation while riding in the back seat with his 3 year-old daughter.

Check out his story below:

“Last week, we were in the car driving somewhere, and my little girl was in the back seat with me. I was really tired, and I leaned over and I put my head on her lap, without even thinking about it. I just wanted to lie down a little bit and sleep because it was a 40-minute drive. And she started patting my head and singing a song through her pacifier. I don’t even know what song it was. . .I looked at my wife, who was in the front seat, and she had tears in her eyes.”

“There’s the idea that we as parents spend all this time protecting our children. No, I think they’re protecting us. Sitting in the car with my head on her lap and her singing to me, there was this understanding of, ‘Wow, she’s looking after Dad, and that’s her job.’ You know? And that was such a joy. Oh, there’s nothing better! It was the happiest moment of my life.” – Chris Hemsworth

What do you think? Especially for those of us with young kids but it rings true for our older kids or even us as kids of a mother and father. Is it the kids job to protect the parent?

It all boils down to the simple fact that as much as we think about or talk about how our job as a parent is to protect our kids, they actually protect us as well. My kids (9 and 11 years old) are some of the most caring and nurturing human beings I know. They know when I am sad or hurt and they go into protection and care mode. They tell me they love me all the time. There were times when I could not have made it without them as a single dad and there are times they give me the strength to try harder to be a better husband and father now. They take care of daddy always. I hopefully when they are older and I don’t have to care for them as much, they will still have it in them to look out for daddy.

To the parents in the trenches, I think our young kids protect us as much as we protect them.

DC area Cool Dads and cool moms join us for the movie screening for “Pan.” The boy who can fly and never grows up is one the most ingenious and unforgettable characters in literature. This new adaptation of James Matthew Barrie’s classic includes Hugh “Wolverine” Jackman as Hook. Will this new Peter Pan fly?

SYNOPSIS
The story of an orphan who is spirited away to the magical Neverland. There, he finds both fun and dangers, and ultimately discovers his destiny — to become the hero who will be forever known as Peter Pan.

WOW! Live action retelling of Disney classic from the director of Iron Man. Jon Favreau will bring to life one of my favorite books in April 15, 2016 and it looks awesome. Idris Elba, Scarlett Johansson and more help raise the ante on this classic story and smash what we remember from the sweet little cartoon movie. Can’t wait to take the kids. You must watch.

This weekend Brand Jordan reunites Michael Jordan and Bugs Bunny releasing the new Air Jordan 1 Mid “Hare” and the Air Jordan 1 Mid Lola sneakers (April 4). You may remember when the Space Jam movie took over the airwaves and movie screens as the film grabbed the public’s attention and slam dunked it in the bank.

I let my kids watch the movie a year ago and they still enjoyed it; the mix of sports, comedy and music in a cartoon with classic Warner Bros characters is undeniable. My son mentioned that he would like to see a Space Jam sequel, when I showed him the new shoes.

Check out this new SportsCenter inspired cup of Hare Jordan:

By the way, If you are remotely a sneaker head you will also remember the “Hare” 7s. No worries, they plan on releasing them this summer but be prepared to stand in a cartoonish line or pay high ACME prices the internet, the demand will be high.

Daddy Cool is running a Twitter contest for free tickets to The Spongebob Movie: Sponge Out of Water for the next THREE days (Wed – Fri). The winner will receive free tickets for the family to see The Spongebob Movie at any AMC or Regal theater in the DMV area at their leisure.

Can you say, “Date Night?” This movie doesn’t come out until February 13th, but you can see Kingsman: The Secret Service the week before it hits theaters. On Thursday February 5th, join DaddysCool.com for the advanced screening of the movie in the DC area.

Kingsman is based on a popular comic book series and is directed by the director of Kick Ass and X-Men First Class.

Throw us a some Twitter Love. Tweet – “Follow @1cooldadme thanks for the #Kingsman movie passes”

“The Paddington movie is a really good fantasy about a talking bear and how he moves from Peru to London to live with a human family (The Browns),” according to my youngest daughter Nya. “It’s a fantasy because bears really don’t talk in real life,” she said.

The kids and I got a chance to check out the “Paddington” movie before it hits theaters this Friday. I remember the books written by Michael Bond, but my kids hadn’t read any, nor were they familiar with Paddington, as I was. They still wanted to see the movie from the producer of “Harry Potter” and though we were in a theater full of eager book fans laughing and sighing at every turn in the story, they very much enjoyed it.

I didn’t know how much until after the film, mostly because I could not hear the kids over the adults in the movie having such a good time. As for this cool dad, I enjoyed it. It doesn’t feel like a kids movie, it has a charm and sophistication to it. It’s like a smart kid’s “Curious George.”

One scene that stood out for me was when we look at Paddington’s London family’s dad, Mr. Brown, and his former self with long hair blazing a hippie trail on a motorcycle in route to deliver his pregnant wife at the hospital. ” Something about being a father changes you,” the narrator says as the now stuffy and straight-laced Mr. Brown exits the hospital seconds later. Mr. Brown will see another significant change in his character by movies’ end as he becomes a father again to Paddington Brown.

Even though there is a scene of mischievous rocket science, at its base, this movie is not rocket science. Although it contains some smart British humor, all is still within reach of young kids. Check it out, you and your kids will be pleasantly surprised.

My kids thought:

“It is funny and a little emotional. It is a good family movie.”

“The bear was cute and adventurous. The Brown family was nice to him.”

ANNIE makes her triumphant return to theaters this month! If you saw the movie or the play or both like me, you have to take your kids to check the new version. As a child of the 80’s, I’m excited for the new Annie movie remake. Come see it with other cool dads in the DC area. Click on the link for your free passes to see it before it is released in theaters.

As always, seats are first-come, first-served so people should arrive early to make sure they get seats.

Synopsis: Academy Award® nominee Quvenzhané Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wild) stars as Annie, a young, happy foster kid who’s also tough enough to make her way on the streets of New York in 2014. Originally left by her parents as a baby with the promise that they’d be back for her someday, it’s been a hard knock life ever since with her mean foster mom Miss Hannigan (Cameron Diaz). But everything’s about to change when the hard-nosed tycoon and New York mayoral candidate Will Stacks (Jamie Foxx) – advised by his brilliant VP, Grace (Rose Byrne) and his shrewd and scheming campaign advisor, Guy (Bobby Cannavale) – makes a thinly-veiled campaign move and takes her in. Stacks believes he’s her guardian angel, but Annie’s self-assured nature and bright, sun-will-come-out-tomorrow outlook on life just might mean it’s the other way around.

I forgot to post a review about the Earth to Echo screening. SO here it goes …

The movie about highway construction forcing families to move and young friends to separate, finds four young friends on a sci-fi adventure when they find a cute little alien robot trying to get home. My kids loved the movie! It was humorous without forced jokes and the movie had a nice flow to it. As the adult, I found it mildly entertaining. The script lacked originality and substance. Films like E.T. and the other 80’s kids sci-fi films seemed to connect with the audiences more, because the movies relied more on the writing. But I am probably over thinking it because I was excited about this movie believing it would take me back those feelings I get from my childhood films. No dice. But the bottom line is the kids loved it and the movie was devoid of adult themes etc. Earth to Echo is a good family flick. Check it out.

I recently took the kids to see How To Train Your Dragon 2. The kids and I were so impressed with the film that I asked my 9-year old, Michal Zoe, to write a review. It ended up being more about her experience, but I love it! Check out what she wrote:

By Michal Zoe Tucker

Before its release, my dad, my siblings, and I went to see a screening of How to Train Your Dragon 2!

I was so excited, I had never been to a screening before. The best part was that we got reserved seats! When we walked in, my dad looked for where we were supposed to go, because he had written an article for his job and that’s why we got the tickets. So he was looking for the people to meet up with them. After we found them we got our glasses and a photographer took our picture. Then we got something to eat. I ordered boneless chicken wings, french fries, and fruit punch. I ordered a small cup of juice and it looked liked a large bowl of popcorn.

Anyway, we went into the movie theater and saw the movie! That was one of the best animated movies I’ve seen all year! It was way better than the first one! It had so much action! It was a very sad and happy movie, It was also very funny! I loved the part when Hiccup finally met his mother! If they come out with a new one, I can’t wait to see it! Great movie!

How To Train Your Dragon returns with a sequel on June 13 but Daddy’s Cool can get you passes to the advance screening, if you are in the Washington, DC area. We also have the inside scoop on an awesome free movie-themed event celebrating the movie this Saturday, June 2 at RFK Stadium called DRAGON FIELD DAY. Great stuff for the dad on a budget or just looking for something fun to do with your kids.

The first How To Train Your Dragon movie is one of my kids favorites, they even attended the live action experience when they formatted a play for arenas. You don’t want to miss How to Train Your Dragon 2! Get your FREE MOVIE SCREENING passes here. Info about this Saturday is below: